World

Egypt requests status of Egyptian artifacts after Brazil museum fire

2018-09-04 09:32:21

CAIRO, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Egypt requested Monday a detailed report on the status of Egyptian artifacts on display at Brazil's 200-year-old National Museum in Rio de Janeiro that caught fire late on Sunday.

Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities Moustafa el Waziri expressed in a statement regret over the incident, saying the fire is a fatal loss to human and historical heritage.

He said Egypt is ready to send experts and cooperate with the museum officials in restoring the priceless artifacts that were damaged in the fire as long as it was requested by the Brazilian government.

The museum press services reported no injuries as the fire broke out at night when the museum was closed to the public.

The three-story museum, which houses more than 20 million items, used to be the official residence of Portuguese and Brazilian royal families.

The museum has archaeological finds including some of the first fossils found in Brazil, historical relics and artifacts from Egypt and other countries as well as Greco-Roman pieces of art.